Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself. They come through you but not from you, And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you.

More from The Prophet, 'Children'

• If indeed you must be candid, be candid beautifully.
• The love of a parent for a child is the love that should grow towards separation.
• The soul of the philosopher lies wake in their head The soul of the poet soars in their heart The soul of the singer vibrates in their throat. But the soul of the dancer lives in all of their body.
• The soul of the philosopher lies wake in their head The soul of the poet soars in their heart The soul of the singer vibrates in their throat. But the soul of the dancer lives in all of their body. The Belly Dancer (poem)
• What the soul longs for, is attained by the spirit.
• Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself. They come through you but not from you, And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you. The Prophet, 'Children'